If you are following and eating a high fiber diet you probably wouldn’t need a laxative, herbal or otherwise, that is if you are eating fiber rich foods. Doctors know that a diet high in fiber controls constipation by keeping things moving through the intestine.
Fiber Rich Foods
For a great lifestyle change build your meals around natural foods high in fiber. Foods such as fiber rich fruits and vegetables, and whole grains. Cut back on processed foods, which tend to have too little fiber.
Every whole grain item and every fiber rich fruit and vegetable helps prevent and relieve constipation. In folk medicine the foods that get special recognition as laxatives include almonds, apples, avocados, chicory, dandelion, dates, endive, figs, flaxseed, grapes, mangos, papayas, parsley, persimmons, pineapple, prunes, rhubarb, rutabagas, soybeans, turnips, walnuts and watercress.
Consuming foods rich in fiber can lower cholesterol levels and stabilize blood sugar levels. It helps prevent colon cancer, constipation, hemorrhoids, obesity, and many other disorders. Fiber is also good for removing certain toxic metals from the body. Because the refining process has removed much of the natural fiber from our foods.
Fiber is essential to health, eat foods high in fiber daily, in fact eat more. Fiber is not found in animal products, fudge, or potato chips! It is found in your fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes. Besides eating fiber rich foods, drink juices as a supplement for additional nutrients, for protective effects to help your body prevent disease, and for therapeutic benefits. Very few people find the time to eat enough raw fruits and vegetables to maintain optimal health and energy. Juicing is an easy, quick means to increase your intake of these high fiber foods, and it is recommended in addition to a high fiber diet. Also a great way to get fiber rich foods for kids.
Fiber is a type of polysaccharide that resists digestion by your body’s enzymes and acids. Soluble fiber forms a gel like substance in the digestive tract that appears to bind cholesterol so it cannot be reabsorbed. Insoluble fiber is sometimes called nature’s broom, because it decreases transit time in your intestine and keeps it swept clean.
Fiber Supplements
There are seven basic classifications of fibre: bran, cellulose, gum, hemicellulose, lignin, mucilages, and pectin. Each form has its own function. It is best to rotate among several different supplemental fiber sources. Today’s average is lacking in fibre, consuming excessive amounts may decrease the absorption of zinc, iron, and calcium. Always take supplemental fiber separately from other medications or supplements. Otherwise, it can lesson their strength and effectiveness.
Bran, Gums, and Mucilages help regulate blood glucose levels, aid in lowering cholesterol. They are found in oatmeal, oat bran, sesame seeds, and dried beans.
Pectin slows the absorption of food after meals, great for people with diabetes. Pectin is found in apples, bananas, beets, cabbage, carrots, citrus fruits, dried peas, and okra.
Lignin is good for lowering cholesterol levels. It helps prevent the formation of gallstones by binding with bile acids and removing cholesterol before stones form. Lignin is found in brazil nuts, carrots, green beans, peaches, peas, potatoes, strawberries, tomatoes, and whole grains.
Hemicellulose is an indigestible complex carbohydrate that absorbs water. Promotes weight loss, relieving constipation, preventing colon cancer, and controlling carcinogens in the intestinal tract. Hemicellulose is found in apples, bananas, beans, beets, cabbage, corn, green leafy vegetables, pears, peppers, and whole grain cereals.
Cellulose is an indigestible carbohydrate found in the outer layer of vegetables and fruits. It is good for hemorrhoids, varicose veins, colitis, and constipation, and for the removal of cancer-causing substances from the colon wall. It is found in apples, beets, brazil nuts, broccoli, carrots, celery, green beans, lima beans, pears, peas, and whole grains.
List Of Foods Rich In Fiber
High fiber diet – Choose from these natural foods high in fiber.
| FOOD GROUP | PORTION | FIBRE |
| Vegetables | ||
| Asparagus, boiled | 5 spears | 1g |
| Beans, green or yellow, steamed | 1/2 cup | 2g |
| Broccoli, raw or steamed | 1/2 cup | 2g |
| Brussels sprouts | 1/2 cup | 3g |
| Cabbage, cooked | 1/2 cup | 1g |
| Carrots, raw or steamed | 1/2 cup | 2g |
| Cauliflower, raw | 1/2 cup | 1g |
| Celery, raw | 1 stalk | 1g |
| Lettuce | 1 cup | 1g |
| Mushrooms, cooked | 1/2 cup | 2g |
| Parsnips, cooked | 1/2 cup | 3g |
| Peppers | 1/2 cup | 1g |
| Potato with skin | 1 med. size | 5g |
| Spinach, steamed | 1/2 cup | 3g |
| Squash, boiled | 1/2 cup | 2g |
| Squash, boiled | 1/2 cup | 2g |
| Sweet potato | 1/2 cup | 4g |
| Tomato, raw | 1 med. size | 2g |
| Tomato sauce, plain | 1/2 cup | 2g |
| Fruit | ||
| Apple with skin | 1 med. size | 3g |
| Applesauce | 1/2 cup | 2g |
| Apricots | 1/4 cup | 3g |
| Banana | 1 med. size | 2g |
| Blueberries | 1/2 cup | 2g |
| Cantaloupe | 1/2 small fruit | 2g |
| Dates | 5 | 4g |
| Grapefruit | half | 2g |
| Grapes | 20 | 1g |
| Mango | half | 2g |
| Orange | 1 med. size | 3g |
| Papaya | 1/2 small | 3g |
| Peach, with skin | 1 med. size | 2g |
| Pear, with skin | 1 med. size | 5g |
| Plums, with skin | 2 | 2g |
| Prunes | 5 | 3g |
| Raisins | 1/3 cup | 3g |
| Raspberries | 1/2 cup | 3g |
| Strawberries | 1/2 cup | 2g |
| Whole Grain Foods | ||
| Bread, whole wheat, rye, whole grain | 1 slice | 2g |
| White bread | 1 slice | 1g |
| Pita, whole wheat | half | 3g |
| Rice, brown, cooked | 1/2 cup | 2g |
| Rice, white, cooked | 1/2 cup | 5g |
| Pasta, whole wheat, cooked | 1 cup | 2g |
| Pasta, regular, cooked | 1 cup | 1g |
| All bran | 1/2 cup | 12g |
| Bran flakes | 3/4 cup | 6g |
| Multi-grain cheerios | 1 cup | 3g |
| Corn flakes | 1 cup | 1g |
| Oat bran, cooked | 3/4 cup | 3g |
| Rolled oats, cooked | 1/2 cup | 2g |
| Shredded wheat | 1 biscuit | 3g |
| Shreddies | 1/2 cup | 3g |
| Special K | 1 cup | traces |
| Meat Alternatives | ||
| legumes, nuts, and seeds | ||
| Baked beans | 1/2 cup | 10g |
| Kidney beans, cooked | 1/2 cup | 6g |
| Lentils, cooked | 1/2 cup | 4g |
| Almonds | 1/4 cup | 4g |
| Peanuts | 1/4 cup | 2g |
| Sunflower seeds, shelled | 1/4 cup | 3g |
Foods Rich In Fiber-The Herbal Shopper!

